Hearing on judiciary separation Sept 17

FE Team | Published: August 28, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

The Supreme Court (SC) Monday set September 17 for the hearing on separation of the judiciary from the executive, report agencies.
The SC also asked the government to submit an affidavit of a 4,500-strong organogram for judicial service by September 16 to complete the procedure of judiciary separation.
The organogram was approved at a recent meeting of the National Implementation Committee for Administrative Reforms (NICAR).
A six-member full bench of the Appellate Division, headed by chief justice Md Ruhul Amin, issued the ruling after adjourning the hearing at 10am on the day.
At the start of the hearing, attorney general (AG) Fida M Kamal appraised the court of NICAR's August 19 meeting, saying that the NICAR had approved the organogram that includes 655 judicial magistrates.
"Work on making rules of appointment is going on," he said.
The court said the issue of infrastructure would come up after completion of the work.
The court also said posts of magistrate had not been created in seven out of the 64 districts.
"Adequate numbers of employees were not appointed to courts showing the recommendations of the "Enam Commission" on public administrative reforms."
"Decisions about the matters would have to be taken at a ministerial meeting," the court said.
The court asked the AG to submit the NICAR decision in the form of an affidavit.
Fida M Kamal said: "I got the NICAR meeting decision this morning (Monday morning). I couldn't present it in the form of an affidavit. As per the court decision, it will be submitted by September 16."
Barrister M Amir-ul Islam, the counsel for the plaintiff in the Mazdar Hossain case regarding the separation of the judiciary, told the court: "We don't see any priority to the judicial service commission.
"No scope has been left for absorbing the executive magistrates who would become judicial magistrates."
The court said that 33 executive magistrates had already expressed their willingness to become judicial magistrate and the judicial service commission would appoint them.
After the hearing, Amir-ul Islam told reporters that the judicial service commission must have its own secretariat.
"Qualified and efficient magistrates have to be appointed," he said.
The Appellate Division on July 23 fixed August 27 for the hearing by giving the government five weeks time to complete all administrative processes for separation of judiciary.
Meanwhile, the hearing on the contempt cases against 13
bureaucrats, including top government secretaries, for impeding the process of separating the judiciary from the executive was Monday adjourned for three weeks on prayer for time.
A six-member full hierarchy of the SC passed the order.